Updating Your Will: A Small Step That Goes A Long Way

Oftentimes people spend hours of hard time, energy and dollars investing in their important personal legal documents with the intent of stashing them away in the back of a drawer after they’re signed them. And with good reason: it’s difficult contemplating your passing and understandably going through the process once is arduous enough. Unfortunately, these important estate planning documents such as wills and trusts are the exact types of documents that need to be updated on a regular basis, since they ensure your estate is properly managed when you yourself cannot. If it’s been awhile since you last flipped through your will and other important documents, perhaps this year is a good time to do so. Here are some tips and suggestions to help you update your documents to make sure your assets and possessions will actually be going to the correct people and places.

Wills. One of the most important documents to look through and update on a regular basis is your will. Situations and circumstances are constantly changing, and it is essential that your will is updated periodically to reflect these changes. Some of these important considerations include:

Changes to your family or loved ones, such as the birth of grandchildren, a divorce or a marriage, and the coming of age of children. Updating the beneficiaries of your will helps ensure that your possessions will be properly allocated to your loved ones.

Changes in assets, such as properties, businesses, or retirement plans. Assets are continuously changing. Perhaps you no longer live in the same home as you did five years ago, or maybe since you last created or updated your will you have successfully launched a small business. These are important events that need to be added to your will.

Changes in location, such as moving to a new state. If you no longer live in the same state as you did when the will was updated, it may be in your best interest to consult an attorney in the new state about amending your will. States vary in their estate planning requirements and will and estate laws, so it is important to check that your will is in compliance with the laws of your new home state.

Changes in estate and tax law, such as changes in tax-exemption amounts decedents may leave for loved ones. Since state law is constantly changing, it’s essential to check periodically that your will is in compliance with the law and that you are able to get the most out of your will.

Changes in personal circumstances, including charitable or other organizational affiliations. If you have become more involved with a charity or foundation since the creation of your will and would like to provide for them upon your passing, updating your will to include a contribution to the organization would be the best method to ensure your wishes are carried out.

Keeping your will up-to-date may seem like a tedious process, and indeed it is unnecessary to update it after every single big purchase or event. However, it is important that you do take it out and go through it on a regular basis to make sure the provisions laid out in it match your current circumstances. Updating does not entail recreating, so there is no need to draft a new will. Nonetheless, since your will, which protects your most important assets after death, is one of the most important legal documents that you sign, the benefits of keeping it up-to-date far outweigh the periodic inconvenience of the updating process.

Other Important Considerations. Besides wills, another critical consideration when updating your will is whether a will is the best vehicle to carry out your wishes. It is important to be aware that there are other entities that can help protect your assets and ensure that their smooth transfer to your loved ones. One popular vehicle is a trust. A trust is a good way to help manage your assets if you have a more complicated estate, since it offers a greater degree of flexibility than a will would. For example, an additional benefit of a trust is that trusts avoid the probate process that wills are required to go through per state that the decedent has assets. This process is often tedious and stressful and is an unnecessary burden during an already difficult time. Lastly, whereas a will only takes effect after a death, a trust can operate while the individual is still alive. This means that your wishes can be better carried out when you are still alive, but not physically capable of managing your estate. Both wills and trusts are important documents and estate-planning tools. Like wills, it is also important to revisit your trust periodically and ensure that its provisions are up-to-date.

Power of attorneys are also important to consider and update periodically, in particular a health-care power of attorney and a financial power of attorney. These individuals act as agents that can make medical and financial decisions, respectively, on your behalf when you are unable to do so. Not only is it important to update regularly who is named your power of attorney, it is also recommended to consider assigning a backup agent. In addition, consolidating financial and bank accounts to simplify the process for your financial power of attorney is another easy step to ensure your assets are managed to your wishes.

Understandably, estate planning is not necessarily the choice of activity on a sunny afternoon, but it is one that should be prioritized. Fortunately, there is a plethora of resources and experts available to make the process easier for you and to help dispel the stigma surrounding estate planning. At the end of the day, keeping these important documents up-to-date will allow you to go to bed more peacefully, knowing your estate and assets will be properly managed if anything was to happen. That peace of mind is more than worth the small price of the periodic inconvenience to update your documents.